Beautiful White Wood Finishes for Dreamy Interiors

White finishes on real wooden floors, furniture, kitchen worktops and other wooden surfaces have become much more popular in recent years. It’s no surprise when, done right, the effect is so clean-looking, bright, attractive and contemporary. It’s also a brilliant way to achieve today’s hugely fashionable shabby chic interior décor look, which has blown the long trend for minimalist interiors right out of the water.

White wood finishes can transform wooden floors & furniture

So how do you achieve that absolutely perfect, smooth, beautiful white wood finish? In this post we’ll be answering the questions people ask us most frequently to help you achieve that stunning white wood look.

What is a White Wood Finish?

It’s easy to get confused with white wood finishes since there are so many ways to achieve the effect. So first of all, it’s important to pin down the exact effect you’re looking for. You may want a lime wax look, a subtle white wash, a completely opaque white finish or something in between.

White Floor Finishes Using Liming Wax

A popular traditional wood finishing effect, liming is usually carried out on Oak. You get it by raking out the soft grain of the wood, usually with a wire brush. This makes the harder parts of the grain stand out, leaving shallow voids for the liming wax to fill. The effect is stunning: the grain sits proud against a lovely, pale, washed background, highlighting the natural beauty of the wood and the grain’s complex patterns.

There are a couple of things to think about. One, it takes skill to create the perfect consistent finish. Two, like most waxes, liming wax tends to be fairly soft, easily marked and therefore not great for wooden floors, especially in areas where there’s a lot of wear or moisture. As a general rule, liming wax is perfect for internal wooden doors, picture frames and other low-contact, low-wear wooden surfaces.

Last but not least, it isn’t a good idea to try to paint over a wax finish with a varnish, lacquer or paint, mostly because it simply won’t stick – the wax forms a liquid-resistant layer that the varnish or paint won’t adhere to and oils would take an age to penetrate.

White Solvent-Based Wood Stains and Dyes

A popular way of achieving a beautiful white finish is to use Manns White Trade Light Fast Wood Dye, a concentrated dye that can be used on wooden floors, furniture and more. If the white dye is too concentrated, it can be thinned by using Manns Trade Light Fast Thinners for varying degrees of whiteness. This means there’s a treasure trove of decorative effects at your fingertips, everything from a barely-detectable and incredibly subtle wash to a finish that’s almost like an emulsion paint.

A solvent-based wood dye is simply a pigment, and will need sealing with a wood wax or oil.

A clear wax is soft but will keep the white solvent stain or dye white, and should be durable enough for furniture, doors and picture frames.

If over-coating a white wood stain or dye you should avoid clear wood oils and varnishes as these can produce an off-white or slightly yellow finish. Our recommendation is to go for a wood oil that will help to retain the whiteness of the stain or dye such as Osmo Polyx Oil Raw 3044 or Fiddes Hard Wax Oil Natural

For wooden floors, table tops and other interior wood surfaces, we recommend a quality wood oil like white tinted Fiddes Hard Wax Oil Natural or Osmo Polyx Oil Raw 3044. Both are extremely hard wearing, easy to maintain and will protect the pure whiteness of the stain or dye underneath.

Some people actually prefer an off-white finish because it’s subtler, less new-looking and more in keeping with shabby chic style. If that’s you, your life is a whole lot simpler – just use a clear Hard Wax Oil like Osmo Polyx Oil on top of Manns White Wood Dye and voila – a gorgeous, aged white wood finish to die for!

Use either a semi translucent or opaque wood finish to achieve the desired look

White Wood Oils

Primarily for interior use, white wood oils are an excellent all-round solution. They’re easy to use, durable and can be used to create a huge range of stunning effects.

Wood oils are designed to be applied very thinly and worked into the surface grain of the wood. Ideally you want 95% of the product to sink into the wood and only around 5% remaining on top. Think sun cream and you get the picture: apply a small amount then work it in until there’s none visible on the surface. Streaky, uneven finishes, brush strokes and unexpectedly long drying periods are usually down to applying too much oil, so take care not to over-do it.

The whitest effect with the wood grain showing through – Option 5

Osmo says its best to finish coloured oils with a clear oil, because when a surface becomes damaged the clear coat marks rather than the coloured one, making scratches less noticeable.

If having a pure white floor is important to you, leave out the clear coats since they make the colour slightly less white, a little creamier. Oils are very simple to repair, too – small marks and scratches are quick and easy to repair.

Some useful products for achieving white finishes

There are literally dozens of products that can be used to achieve a white wood finish. From a subtle Scandinavian white wash effect to something altogether more bold, or opaque, the following products will achieve these and about everything in-between.

The importance of test areas

White wood finishes can look amazing, but out of all the possible colours and finishes available, can be one of the more problematic to get right. Why is this? All colours are affected to some degree by the type and colour of the wood and the type of top coat used. Clear coats over a white finish, especially on Pine will produce a yellowy or ‘off-white’ finish. This said, using the right products can normally prevent this from happening. We strongly recommend that when looking to achieve a white wood finish, always do a full and extensive test area including both the base coat such as the dye or stain and top coat, be it an oil or varnish. This is to test the final look and colour of the finish when fully dry, and prior to starting the main project. After all, it’s far easier to sand off a test area and try something else than a whole floor.

Confused over which white wood finish to use?

If you’re looking for the perfect white finish for flooring, table tops, doors or any other wood related project in your home and this post hasn’t answered your questions, feel free to contact our team of resident experts. They’re on hand and happy to talk through your project to ensure that you get the right products to achieve the desired white wood finish effect.

This entry was posted
on Thursday, May 22nd, 2014 at 4:44 pm and is filed under Inspiration.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

95 Responses to “Beautiful White Wood Finishes for Dreamy Interiors”

I have a question about removing a limed wax finish on oak. Do you sell something that would either remove the lime wax, or a stain that would restore the natural colour (light to medium oak in this case).

Try Woodleys Wax and Polish Remover to remove the existing liming wax. To refinsh the wood once the old liming wax has been removed, you could consider either a clear hard wax oil such as Osmo Polyx Oil or Fiddes Hard Wax Oil. Both of these products will darken the timber slightly giving it an almost damp like look and will enhance the natural grain and colour of the timber. If you prefer to keep the wood looking natural, almost as if it has nothing on it, consider Osmo Polyx Oil Raw or Fiddes Hard Wax Oil Natural.

I have a table bought about 8 years ago. It is modern with a limed oak finish. It came with a small bottle of liming oil and when that was finished I purchased a similar product from Guardian. I used to wipe it on, leave to dry and polish off. It was a good finish. Now I can’t get this anymore, so I have purchased your Osmo Polish Oil Tint 3040. Will this give me the modern hard wearing finish I am after. I don’t want it to look like a shabby chic finish, or like it is a craft project.

From the description you give of the product that came with the table originally, ‘bottle of liming oil’, it sounds like the Osmo Polyx Oil Tint 3040 will be fine. It may not give an identical finish to the original product but I’m sure you will be happy with the results. Always do a small test area first to ensure that you are happy with the results before starting any project.

The key difference with the Polyx Oil Tint 3040 is in the way it’s applied. Rather than wiping on then buffing off, the Osmo Oil must be applied thinly and worked into the grain of the timber with a lint free cloth, sponge or brush. Always wipe of any excess immediately after application. There is no need to buff but it can be buffed ones fully dried if desired.

Hi we previously had reclaimed opepe parquet flooring which we stained a dark brown maybe 15 years ago. We have now sourced some more opepe since knocking through into the kitchen. Now we have sanded the whole floor we are shocked to see how Orange the opepe actually is. We bought marldon hard wax oil to finish this but on testing this makes the opepe a brighter orange/red. We didn’t want to stain the parquet again but I cannot live with the overpowering orange.
Do you have any idea how to tone down the orange? Would a white oil do this? If so would we be able to use the marldon hard wax oil as a finishing coat?

Thank you for your inquiry, the Opepe can be a naturally very orange toned wood and the oil you are applying is probably enhancing that. It may be worth trying a small test area of a white finish such as Osmo Polyx Oil Tint no. 3040, but this may give a more pink tone to the wood which is why a test area is important. The only other option would be to re stain it again.

I am not familiar with the Marldon Oil but I can recommend Osmo Polyx Oil Clear as a very good top coat. I hope that you manage to achieve the look you owuld like and feel free to ask us any more questions – regards Sam

We have sanded down a 1970’s pine staircase. The plain wood is a nice white colour which we want to maintain. We really want to avoid the yellow colour the pine had when it was varnished. What can we put on the treads of the stairs which will be hard wearing and either maintain the natural look of the wood without turning it yellow or, alternatively, give it a soft whitewashed colour? Many thanks,

There are a couple of products that would be worth trying, the first being the Osmo Polyx Oil Raw which is designed to leave the wood looking as natural as possible whilst still protecting it. The good thing about the Polyx Oil products is that you re apply a top up or do a maintenance coat when needed without having to remove any of the previous product.

Or if you want to think about a slight White finish then Osmo Polyx Oil Tint in white is another option. One coat of this and then a coat of the Polyx Oil Raw on top will give a pale and subtle white finish to the pine. All of these products are available in sample sizes and I would strongly recommend doing some test areas in order to get the right finish. There is also a list of possible product combinations to achieve different levels of white on the blog above.

Hello. We are hoping to achieve a limewash effect to our pine floorboards. They are currently varnished which we will remove with a floor-sander before any treatment.

Looking at this page, you seem to offer a couple of products which may help us and we are particularly interested in the Osmo Polyx Oil.

I have noticed however that in the Product sheet found on Osmo’s website it says to only ever apply one coat of the Polyx oil if using on floors… I am just wondering if they are being extra cautious or if you guys have tried and tested this?

We are hoping to achieve the below shade of white on our pine floors (not too yellow though ideally). Are you able to offer any advice on which product /technique is best to achieve this?

The floorboards in question are in the hallway, living room and dining room. So high traffic areas, esp as access to the kitchen is through the dining room.

Hello Claire,
The main reason that Osmo recommend this is so that any surface marks or light scratches that may appear on the surface will show much less on the clear top coat than on the Tinted top coat. In essence the Tint range is the same as the Polyx Oil but with a small amount of pigment in to give it the colour, so in terms of protection they are equal and you will always require two coats to give your floor the best protection.

However because you are looking to achieve a subtle White finish I would not recommend using the Clear Polyx Oil over the top of a White tint as this can have a yellowing effect on the White. It is worth doing a test area with the Osmo Polyx Oil Tints 3040 to see if one coat or two is the best option for you. If you find that you prefer 1 coat of the Tint then the second coat product to use would be the Osmo Polyx Oil Raw 3044, which has a very small amount of white pigment in it and so you won’t get that yellowing effect. Hope this helps and the most important thing is really the test area that will give you the best indication of the finish that you can achieve.

Hi
We moved into a house 5 years ago which has floorboards stained with Osmo 3040 White Transparent. Over the years the white stain has pretty much gone and so we would like to reapply. Do we need to remove the previous stain or do we just add more? We would like a whitish tint/wash over these pale oak floorboards rather than full blown white. Please advise which products you think we should use, and whether 1 or 2 coats (if 2, should we do Osmo 3040 followed by the Osmo Polyx Oil Raw)?
Many thanks for your help
Clare

You have pretty much got it spot on. Just make sure that the surface of the floor is clean and grease free and then you can apply either 1 or 2 coats of the 3040 White Tint depending on the intensity of white you want to achieve. If 1 coat is enough then the Osmo Polyx Oil Raw is the best option for the second coat. We would love to see some before and after pictures if you get a chance – Sam

I want to create a white driftwood look on new line skirting and need help choosing products. Can you use pine stain (e.g. Driftwood colour for greying the pine) with a liming wax or build up layers of colour using different colours of hard wax tints (e.g grey then white possibly even a clear finish)?

It the might be best to try and achieve the colour you want using the Manns Pine Wood Stain in Driftwood. Its worth noting that the Driftwood can be a little on the dark side but you can mix either water to lighten or even a little of the white pine stain. It may be that you will need to do a little bit of experimenting with mixes until you get the colour that you want ( remembering to write down the ratios as you experiment ) and remembering that you will need to put a top coat product on to protect. The Hard Wax Oil is a good option and comes in 3 different sheen levels, Matt, Satin and Semi Gloss. It will darken the colour a little so its worth adding a top coat to see the final colour when you are experimenting with the stains. Hope this helps.

Thank you for your inquiry, which products you use can depend on the depth of colour you want to achieve. For example the subtlest white will come from doing 2 coats of Osmo Polyx Oil Raw for a slightly more white finish but still quite subtle you could do one coat of the Polyx Oil Tint White with a coat of the Raw on top. There are a number of option to go with that are listed above to guide you to achieving the right finish. All the Osmo products are available in sample sizes so you can do some test areas to see what you like best, and these products will protect as well as colour.

If you have only done 1 layer of the Osmo Polyx Oil you could try applying a coat of the White Tint. It won’t necessarily take it back to the original tone that you had but it may tone down the darkness slightly, you would also need to apply a top coat of clear as the white could mark easily and show wear sooner rather than later, as it is on top of the clear. So applications would need to be very thin. I would recommend a test area first to see if it creates the desired effect, before completing the job. If the test area shows that this is not the finish that you want then the other option would be to sand back to Bare wood and use the Osmo Polyx Oil Raw which is design to leave the wood looking as Natural as possible whilst still giving full protection.

At the weekend I lightly sanded the floor again, it didn’t remove all the oil but I was fine with it. I applied 2 coats of the white tint and I finished with a top layer of oil. It’s not as light as I would have liked however, it’s a lot better and love it! Hopefully it will last as that room has a lot of traffic and often used for parties and family events.

I have just had cupboards made in pine. At the moment the wood is pale. I would like to stain it white but with the wood grain still visible.
I was going for Osmo Wood Wax Finish Transparent 3111 x 2 coats but would like to see an example.

The Osmo Wood Wax Finish Transparent is the ideal product for you to use. You will need to do a test area to ensure that you achieve the finish that you would like, as many products can look different on one piece of wood to another.

We have just had the third session of sanding back and trying a different varnish. A painter decorator has tried bless him but failed.

We are trying to get a lovely white washed effect to our pine floor boards. When he paints them with a diluted brilliant white paint they look great. You can see a little grain and all lovely. Then the varnish happens and it ruins it. All the varnishes we try have a yellow tinge to them and i am at my absolute wits end. He has tried diamond hard as we wanted a hard wearing one but i don’t think thats the answer. He says its the only solution.

Please any advice on what to use to keep that brilliant white floor effect and protect the floor would be hugely appreciated!!!!

Putting a clear finish over a White will nearly always result in a yellow or pink tinge showing. Clear finishes have a very minute amount of pigment in them, which is not seen on any other finish except White. You can deal with this by using a Water Based Varnish and adding a little White dye to the Varnish if you are keen to have a Varnish Finish.

An alternative is to go with the White Hard Wax Oil 2 coats will give a good white finish and you will be able to see the grain. This will give a durable finish that you can add maintenance coats or patch repairs to worn areas, when you feel it needs it over the years. You would need to ensure that all previous product has been removed and sand the floor to a 120 grit to help the Oil to be absorbed. Please feel free to get back to me if you have any other questions – Sam.

Please help!!!
Few months ago we have painted one of our table to repair the damage of a bad moving.
The varnish we used was a water based white suggested by one of the person working at the store. It turned out to be very nice, however Six months have passed and the table was still sticky so to resolve the problem, we thought to finishit it.
Unfortunately, although the table is not sticky anymore, it became completely yellow!!!
We will be sand it again and repaint it, but What product can we use to finish it and obtain a brilliant white table?
Thanks!!

White can sometimes be a difficult colour to work with, and will nearly always turn yellow if you put a clear finish product over the top. This is because clear products have a very minute amount of pigment in them that can not usually be seen, except when applied over white. If you are looking for a solid white finish for your table then I would recommend firstly a Primer which is a white basecoat and then the Manns Interior Wood Paint in white. Do not put any clear coat products on the top. Hope that helps and we would love to see the before and after photos wood@finishes.direct

Thank you for your inquiry, the answer is not short I’m afraid because it depends on how White you would actually like the finish. For a true Lime Waxed finish on your beams you would need to use a wire brush to remove some of the soft wood between the grain and then use a Fiddes Liming Wax, the wax will fill the voids and make the grain stand out giving a beautiful authentic finish to your beams, but try a test area first as it may not be as easy as it sounds.

As an alternative and if you require a more white finish, take a look at the osmo Wood Wax Transparent in White. You can still see the grain and natural feel of the wood with this product but it will have more depth of colour, especially with 2 coats. Again a test area to ensure that you are happy with the finish would be a good idea. I hope that helps and if you have any more questions please feel free to contact our advice team on 0800 7818 123 or email wood@finishes.direct and we would love to see photos of the completed project.

Many thanks for your speedy reply and most helpful advice – I will try the first method you suggest.

I would also like to make use of some reclaimed oak timbers from the original roof. The beams, (about 400 years old), are split and show signs of old woodworm infestation. The rafters seem to be OK and have some original wooden pegs.

What would be the best way to clean and to treat these timbers?

Would it be feasible to give these old timbers a lime finish, and if so, how should that be done?

It would be expect that you could treat these in the same way but with a bit more care. If you wanted to fill the holes you could look at the Osmo Wood Filler which is easy to use and can accept most treatments that you choose to use over the top of them, Test areas being more vital.

However it will also depend on what you are planning on using them for. For example if you where using them to make a dining room table they may need a harder wearing product to protect them, like a Hard Wax Oil – Sam

I have some oak worktops in my kitchen which were finished some years ago with Danish Oil, this feels dated to me now and I’d really like a matt lime washed look (modern rustic / skandi in style ideally, so more than just a hint of white) so 2 questions – what prep if any is required to remove the Danish oil ( there are a few marks, can we just sand these out?) and which products should I use to get the effect I’m looking for, I have a scrap of the oak that Plain English left when installing so could use this for testing and building intensity of colour with multiple layers if that’s possible?

As the Danish Oil was applied a while ago much of it may have come out naturally, but you can give a good wipe down with white spirits ( have the room well ventilated ) to remove any that is left in the wood. It is fine to sand the wood to remove any stains that don’t come out with the White Spirit finish with a 120 grit sandpaper.

For the white lime washed finish you may need to do a little experimenting but I would try the Osmo Polyx Oil Tints in white first. Start with just one coat of this and if this is the finish you are trying to achieve then you would need to put a coat of the Osmo Polyx Oil Raw on top. This is because you need a minimum of two coats for protection. If one coat of the tint is not white enough then try two coats this will intensify the colour and again two coats of this is enough protection.

If this is still not white enough for you then you may need to try a different product such as the Osmo Wood Wax Transparent it is a slightly more intense white but 1 or 2 coats would need a finish coat of the Osmo Polyx Oil Raw for protection.

White can be a difficult finish to get right but with some experimenting and perseverance you can get a beautiful finish and we would love to see the results of your project, you can send images to wood@finishes.direct

We live in a 17c timbered barn with lovely old beams. Unfortunately the person who converted it 15 years ago built a staircase and a large (huge) room divider from new oak which is now looking very yellow and incongruous alongside the old timbers. I would like to ‘knock it back’ to give it a greyish/whitish/weathered effect and have ordered samples of graphite and white polyx oil to do a bit of experimenting. However, the new wood has some sort of finish on it – I don’t think it is a varnish, but it is quite hard – I guess it may be old Danish oil or something similar. Because of the construction of the room divider and its size, removing this finish back to bare wood would be nigh on impossible. I notice that some previous reviewers seem to have used Polyx Oil successfully over previous finishes (or have I misunderstood?) and I wonder if it is absolutely imperative to remove whatever is now on it? Thanks

It is fair to say that you are able to use one oil based product over another without any problems but it is always advisable to do a test area first.
If you are able to remove some of the product by wiping over with white spirit it may improve the colour and saturation for you.

The Danish Oil may have an effect on the white oil that you apply, bringing out the natural yellow tones of the wood and the Danish oil and high lighting them. Again test areas will show up any potential problems you may encounter. And if you find that not removing the Danish Oil does cause a problem, try removing a small area and doing another test area to see if this makes a significant difference. See how that goes and if you have any more questions please let me know – Sam

I have just bought an old cottage and my partner wants a white floor in my daughters bedroom. The boards are the old soft wood type (not tongue and groove) which I have sanded down with a big floor sander etc. The planks have come up nice with a good pronounced grain showing which I am keen to not totally cover up. my daughters 6 so will probably be throwing toys around etc so I need a pretty tough finish as I am not keen to keep maintaining the floor once its done.
can you advise on a suitable product. Thanks Rob ps great web site.

The Hard Wax Oils are pretty durable and will give you the finish that you are looking for. You can try Osmo Polyx Oil Tint in white as this will allow you to see the grain of the wood through it. A test area will show you how white the oil will be on your floor and whether 1 or 2 coats would be required for depth of colour. If 1 is enough then you would need to use the Osmo Polyx Oil Raw over the top as a minimum of two coats are required for the best durability. Always do a test area.

It would be necessary to do a maintenance coat after a few years, dependent on use and general wear and tear, but this is simple enough to do. Make sure the floor is clean and dust free and then simple apply a coat of the Oil. This will refresh and revive the floor ready for another couple of years of use. It would also be advisable to give the floor at least 24 hours to fully cure before putting it into full use. And of course we would love to see some photos.

Another option for you to try would be the Water based Stain in white, you can add many coats to intensify the colour and then finish with a Varnish that has a small amount ( 5 – 10 % ) of the White stain mixed into it. Or even use our Water Based Wood Dye which will give an even more intense White and then finish with a varnish.

This could help you to get a more intense white whilst still seeing the grain of the wood and allowing it to have a natural looking finish. After this the only other option would be to go for a more solid white finish such as Ronseal Diamond Hard Floor Paint which will be an opaque finish, again test areas are advised, but you should be able to get the right finish from one of these combinations. And I would love to see some photos when you get it done – Sam.

Hi Sam,
We love the finish that you get with osmo but are wondering how durable it is? (In a high traffic room.) How often will we need to reapply it? the other option we were thinking about was using a diluted white varnish with a clear Matt varnish over the top. What do you think?
Thanks, Georgie.

Varnish is not an option I’m afraid, you can’t apply it over an Oil finish. The Polyx Oil from Osmo is a pretty hard wearing and durable finish and should be fine on any domestic floor as long as you have applied it correctly. Inevitably there are areas that will fade or wear quicker than others, like doorways and when this happens you can patch repair. To do this you need to make sure the area being treated is clean and grease free and then apply a very thin coat. It should blend well with the current treatment on the floor.

Our you can refresh the whole floor after a couple of years if you feel that it needs it. And use a Ph Neutral cleaner design for Oiled floors such as Osmo Wash and Care and to give a refresh every so often without having to re oil you could use the Liquid Wax Cleaner from Osmo, hope that helps Sam.

Hi
We are refurbishing and want our pine floorboards to have a light whitewashed finish, leaving the grain still visible, but also something hard-wearing and low-maintenance. The complication is that a number of new floorboards will have to be patched in with the old, and I don’t know how old the old boards are (perhaps installed by the previous owner, in the last 10 years, perhaps as old as the house — 1920s). Will mixing up the old and new boards affect the colour, and is there any treatment that would be more suitable to achieve the look we want?
Many thanks for your help
Catherine

Test areas are really the only way to see if there will be a significant difference between the old and the new boards. It may be worth looking at the Manns Pine Wood Stain or the Manns Wood Dye, both are available in white in you can intensify the colour by adding as many coats as you like.

So if the older boards are darker, for example you can add fewer coats of the stain than to the newer boards. And then seal with a Osmo Polyx Oil Tint in white. It is important that what ever you seal it in has a small amount of white pigment in it to avoid the yellowing effect of applying a clear product onto white.

I hope this helps and if you have any further questions please let me know – Sam.

Dear Sam,
I am about to order an untreated oak worktop for use in the kitchen. The suppliers only recommend Danish oil, lots and lots of layers to give good protection and a waterproof finish as of course it will be around the sink and drainer as well .
When friends did this to their oak worktop it ended up a very yellow colour. Although I understand it will get a bit darker, I would like to keep a colour closer to natural /paler wood, but not white. I think your website says mixing a little white dye in with oil -but we will still need to have many layers of oil (+/- dye) to give the protection.
Do we put a little white dye in every layer, or just the first few, and will it inevitably end up yellow with time whatever we use? I suppose yellow is better than black with mould!
Regards, Julie

No need to get into mixing products, have a look at the Fiddes Hard Wax Oil Natural it is a protective oil that is designed to keep the wood looking as natural as possible, and so already has a small amount of white pigment in it. This product is durable and hard wearing and only requires 2 thin coats unlike the Danish Oil.

For and extra protection around the sink area I would also recommend a coat of the Osmo Wood Protector this will help keep the wood in good condition. I hope this helps and if you have any other questions please let me know – Sam.

Hi Sam,
I would like to achieve a white washed shabby chic effect on an unfinished ash kitchen work surface which involves minimum after care.
Howdens now sell a protective plastic coating (Rustins) for wood countertops which only requires a re-application every 2 years and they highly recommend its protective qualities. I am interested in low maintenance due to my cottage possibly having to be rented out in the future and I cannot rely on tenants to maintain or care for it.
So what would you recommend using for a shabby chic white wood effect using the plastic coating as a finish please? I am trying for the most durable finish but an organic look.
Or is varnish more durable than oil and ought I use a combination of dyes or stains which use a varnish finish? There seem to be so many combinations I’m unclear what the differences are!
Many thanks in advance for reading this,
Claudia

It is fair to say that the Varnish will be more durable than an Oil, but an Oil will give a more natural finish and be easier to maintain. These are the two products that I would recommend.

Varnish creates a seal on the surface of the wood and is very hard wearing and durable, you would need to apply White Stain first to get your colour and then the Varnish to seal.

With the Hard Wax Oil which comes in a white finish, it is a colour and treatment in one and will give a durable finish that would just need re coating in around 18 mths to 2 years depending on use. The maintenance doesn’t require you to remove all the previous product, like a varnish would, simply make sure that the surface is clean and grease free and apply another thin coat.

Hello, I am wanting to give my solid (pine I think) table which is stained the reddy colour the drift wood look and raw finish. I don’t want it looking yellow or red from any of the stain. I was thinking of stripping the table back to bare and working from there. What would be your suggestion. My ideal look is the rustic elm or oak. I know it depends on what colour the base appears once cleared of product. If it is a yellowy pine can I still accomplish the rustic aged look?

With a little bit of experimenting I am sure that you will be able to achieve the look that you want. Once you have sanded the wood back and have a better idea of the natural colour of the wood you can have a look at the Manns Pine Wood Stains and depending on the colour you go for you could finish with a Clear Oil of the Polyx Oil Raw I hope you are able to achieve the look you want and if you do please send us some photos.

Hi, wondering if you could assist? We bought a house with Kitchen tops (assumed to be cherry was wood) and it looks as if it was finished with Liming wax but it has “weathered” in some places and seems as it it was never maintained. Pls could you advise how I would need to go about re-apply the liming wax to create the same look? We have tried varnishing a small piece and re-apply the liming wax but it bring out the red tinge in the wood, where as the original coloring is a white was wax finish with no red tinge coming through.

It may be easier if you where to send some photos in of the current colour of the worktop. And also to establish what type of product you have on the wood. If you could do a small test in an inconspicuous area, put a couple of drops of oil on the wood and leave for about 1 hour. If the oil soaks in or begins to then you are likely to have an oil or wax on the surface. It remains unmoved then you have a sealed surface, i.e varnish. Once this is established I can advice the best way forward for you. You can send emails to wood@finishes/direct – Sam

The wood stain will work on any wood, however the colour result can vary greatly when applied to different woods. The colour tabs that you see on the website are a guide as to what the stain will look like on Pine for the Pine Wood Stain and Oak for the Oak wood Stain . There is no reason that they cannot be used on other types of wood also. Please let me know if you have any further questions – Sam

How soon after applying the osmo poly white tint or white wax can I apply a second coat (of osmo raw or white tint)?

How long after applying the first and the second coats can the surface be carefully walked on in soft shoes/socks?

Do you have a page where you display all the white wood photos that readers send in? (If they do) It would be helpful to see them…

It would also be helpful if you were to show the various degrees of whiteness achieved with each of the five options in your article above – I know the exact effect varies from wood to wood, but it would give a rough guide…

Thank you for your inquiry, The Tint needs 24 hours for drying time and then you can apply the second coat, the Raw needs 9 hours drying time.Many people do applications in the evening giving the product over night to dry, so it doesn’t have too much effect on everyday life. I would recommend at least 24 hours after the final coat before putting the floor back into action, although it will be touch dry sooner and if you are careful you can walk on it in socks. You will still need to be careful not to scrap furniture across the surface.

Unfortunately we do not have a gallery of white finishes to share but thank you for your suggestion I will put it forward to our Visuals Executive. Please let me know if you have any further questions.

Hi guys,
I have sanded my pine boards and they are now ready for lime washing. I would like to know which product to use? Would also like to know what stage I de-nib the floor, after the limewash has cured or after the first coat of lacquer? Note I will be using a water based lacquer as my top coat/finish.

Hi , we ultimately want a lime wash effect on our floor boards with some transparency so we can see the wood grain through, not a block coverage.
We will be starting with brand new untreated pine floorboards which will be very pale

How would recommend we go about achieving this?

Would a waterbased stain , say antique pine be best first off so there is more contrast coming through?

There can be quite a complex answer to your inquiry, so I think the best option would be if you can email me with the same questions and some images of your floor and I can then get one of our flooring experts to have a look and we can advice you from there. The email is wood@finishes.direct FAO Sam.

I want to dull down a cork tiled floor with a touch of white but still keeping it natural, I bought some Manns Pine Wood Stain and Manns Extra Tough Floor Varnish. The wood stain is too strong and looks a bit like tippex, can I add a little wood stain to the varnish to dilute it? They’re both water based..

Hi,
I have bought a factory finished wood floor in white but it is nowhere near as white as I would like. I believe it has been finished with a Polyx oil product, probably 3040. I have tried adding extra layers of 3040 and 3111 to a sample and like the results but am concerned that it will not be durable as there are now 3 or 4 layers of the oil on. The whitest effect is very easy to scratch with a fingernail although the original factory finish does not seem to scratch easily. I prepared the test samples a few days ago- will they harden up more given time? The alternative is to send the wood back and start again with unfinished flooring – yet more hassle!

Thank you for your inquiry, I have looked into whether you could use the Country Colour on your floor but Osmo have confirmed that it is not suitable. The only other option is trying the Osmo Wood Wax Finish Intensive this will give a more intense white finish, whilst still being transparent, but is not durable enough for flooring and so it would need a top coat of the Osmo Tint in White or the Osmo Polyx Oil Raw which are durable enough.

It is fair to say that the oil will harden more over a period of days particularly at this time of year when the temperatures are on the lower side. Please let me know if you have any further questions.

We have exposed ceiling trusses of rough cut Santa Maria, a grainy tropical hardwood with natural golden to pink hues. I want a whitewashed type finish that can go on the rough surface without any sanding before application. It is fine for the pink and gold to show through somewhat, although I don’t want to enhance any orange tones. Would either a white oil finish or a water-based white dye work in this situation? Since it is the ceiling, there will be no issue with wear, but it will be difficult to do any rubbing between applications. Any suggestions? Thank you.

The Manns Pine Wood Stain is the ideal product and then finished with the Osmo Extra Thin Oil which is ideal for use on Tropical hardwoods.But ideally this like any other product should be applied to sanded, prepared wood. Having said that, as it is a surface that is not being used applying to unprepared wood may not be an issue, you may just not get a smooth finish.

Test areas are the best thing for you to do and the recommended products are available in a sample sizes. The test area will also give you an indication of how the white will effect the pink /orange tones in the wood. And because you are applying to a tropical hard wood you will need to give extra thin coats and really work it into the wood. If you have any further questions please feel free to get in touch.

I have purchased 2 x 3m lengths of beech worktop.
They are currently lightly oiled however i would like to make them as white as possible but allowing the grain of the wood to continue to be seen.
They will be used in an office so won’t come into contact with any water.
What would you recommend?

The White Oils recommended in the Blog would all be suitable the Osmo Wood Wax Transparent having the most pigment in it will give a more intense white than the others. You can apply two coats of this if the worktop is only used occasionally or for a slightly more durable finish you could apply one coat of the Transparent and one coat of the Polyx Oil Raw as the top coat. They are available in sample sizes as well so that you can carry out the recommended test areas. I hope this help and please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have any other questions.

Hi,
last year we made some shelves out of pine floorboards, I stained them with a coat of Osmo Polyx tints in white, I have recently noticed that the areas that don’t get any light (where my daughter has items on her shelf) have turned yellow. Is there anything I can do to stop this happening again?

Hi
I am about to do a subtle lime wash on oak floors. I have 2 dogs, one who is old and sometimes has accidents. What’s the best top coat to use? Varnish or wax or oil? Don’t love varnish, bit if that’s best will do that. I use a wood floor steam cleaner on the floor to make sure it’s hygienic so finish needs to be able to cope with that.
Thank you

My apologies for the delay in getting back to you. I would expect a Varnish to be the better option for homes with Dogs and little accidents. However there is a chance that stains or mark can still occur. We do not ever recommend the use of a Steam cleaner on any wooden floor as the heat and humidity damages the finish and the wood itself. We have some very good cleaning solutions on our website that are ideal for varnished floors.

Bona Spray Mop is a really good floor cleaner and there is a cost effective refill Bona Wood Floor Cleaner to keep it topped up. And the pad is washable. I hope that helps and please let me know if you have any questions.

hi, I already have the osmo polyx raw and am wondering if I can add a small amount of tint or colour to it to very slightly whitewash corks tiles. Is this possible? If so, would I need to use an oil based tint or colour? I would be thinking of applying a middle coat of the tinted and then top coat with the plain. I only want a very slight tint of white. It is on a very small area-1.5m2.
Cheers

Yes this would be fine as long as the current finish on the tiles is oil. You could use the Osmo Tints which are available in sample sizes. I would advise mixing a very small amount first, recording the ratios and then when you get the colour you like you can create a big batch.

You can apply one coat of the coloured oil and one coat of the clear. Or you can apply two coats of the coloured oil. You may find that the cork absorbs more than the recommended amount as the guide is for application to wood, but application should still be thin. Test areas should always be done first. I hope that helps and please do let me know if you have any further questions.

Our beech worktops are 12 years old. I sand and oil them annually and they are a rich yellow- brown. I thought of replacing them with a white oiled oak worktop, but now I think I should try to be more eco friendly and rehabilitate the existing worktops.

Would I need to sand back to bare wood to get rid of the yellow-brown colour?

What treatment should I apply to make a good lime-washed look, and durable surface?

Thank you for your inquiry, its always great to hear that people are still keen to replenish existing surfaces. I would recommend sanding back to bare wood for your project, this will help remove the current colour and give you your fresh base for oiling.

I would recommend looking at the Top Oil Natural it is designed to leave the wood looking as natural as possible, but can sometimes give a white washed effect on hard woods or medium to dark oaks, as it has a minute amount of white pigment.

So a test area first to see how it looks on your wood is the first thing to do and if you are happy with the test area, then two thin coats can be applied to the worktop. You might find some of our videos useful >>> https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7-tgwbsUxm73aVnAjLGHRA and if you have any questions let me know.

I have just purchased a hardwood timber whitewash finish dining table which has a Matt look. I would now prefer a more satin finish and wondered if you could suggest what we could use to obtain this look. Can provide a photo of the table. Thanks.

Thank you for your inquiry are you able to tell me what has been used to give the white washed effect as this will have an impact on what I can recommend. You can send a photo in to wood@finishes.direct and I will be happy to take a look.

There is a small test that we often recommend but I would be worried it may mark your finish as it is white.Leaving a small drop of oil on the surface for about 30 minutes and see if it remains unmoved or if it soaks in. But I do not wish to recommend this test for you.

The only other issue with applying a finish over white is that it can yellow the white a little. A clear varnish over a white paint will result in an off white finish. If you are able to email me with some more information I will happily advice further.

Hi We have just sanded our old pine floorboards and am looking for a quite white finish. Not solid white but nonetheless quite white with the grain coming through. We have tried osmo oil stain in white and the pine still seems quite yellow after 2 coats. Can you recommend anything else. Out decorator doesn’t seem keen to use wax as she says that will take along time to apply, however I have a feeling the oil stain needs to be applied with a rag too? Any help would be really appreciated.
Many thanks Cassie

Hello Cassie,
Thank you for your inquiry. White finishes are very popular at the moment and when done well can look stunning. Getting the perfect white finish can be difficult and often the wood you are applying to can make or break it. I can see from your order that you have tried the Osmo Oil Stain and we tend to only recommend this for professional use as it needs to be buffed in and then over coated with the Osmo Polyx Oil

As an alternative I would recommend the Tinted Oil also from Osmo. It is colour and protection in one and just requires two thin coats for application.

For a more intense white finish there is the Wood Wax Finish Transparent one coat with one coat of the tint above for durability. If you have a look at these products and let me know if you have any further questions, I will be happy to help.

We had our bedroom floorboards professionally sanded back in December. They only sanded the floor, as I wanted to finish the floor myself. We were set on a white finish, and having read this blog post I proceeded to buy samples of all the suggested Osmo finishes.

After much testing, unfortunately none were quite white enough for our liking, so in the end I went for one not listed here – the Osmo Wood Wax Finish Intensive – White Matte 3186.

I applied one coat, followed by 1 coat of Osmo Polyx Raw. The finish itself is great and seems extremely durable, and although quite white indeed, in hindsight we’re thinking we want to go whiter! At the moment the wood grain is still quite visible, and some of the ‘yellower’ areas of the boards still show through, which I think is what is making us want a stronger, more even white finish. Perhaps what we’re reay after is as close to the white painted floorboard look as we can get without actually using paint! Some wood grain showing through is not a problem though, and I really like using Osmo products.

My question is, given what has already been applied, would I be safe to apply another coat of the Wood Wax Intensive? My concern is that if were I to do this, I’d like to finish with another coat of Polyx Raw for durability – however I’m guessing the wood might not accept that quantity of oil given that two coats were applied only back in December…

Do you think this would be possible perhaps in 12 months time when the floor would be ready for a routine re-oil anyway? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Finally, love the site and have used you guys for a good few projects now – excellent service!

Thank you for your enquiry. There is a simple test that you can do to see if the wood will take some more oil. Simply put a small drop of oil onto the surface and leave for 30 minute to an hour. If the drop moves or soaks in this will indicate that a thin coat can be applied. If it remains unmoved then you will need to wait around 6 months and then try the oil test again.

The Osmo Intensive is the product with the highest amount of white pigment in it but as you say is not durable enough for a floor finish. So you may find that waiting for 12 months is your best option.

There is the possibility of wiping over the surface with some White Spirit but this is a last resort really and would not like you to end up with a patchy finish, when it is currently even and well applied.

I hope that helps and if you have any further questions please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Can you tell me if I can use your wood stain on mdf skirting & door standards. I would like to stain and varnish the mdf. The mdf is white. What is the best way to prepare it before staining. Any advice would be appreciated.

When you say the MDF is white, do you mean that there is some treatment on there already ? If so this may prevent penetration to wood. You will need to remove any existing product before applying the stain. Stripping the white will depend on what the product is that has made the wood white, so if it is a paint or varnish for example you could look at the Paint Panther for stripping back to bare wood.

We have laid a new timber floor, its an engineered oak finish called Galleria ELite Engineered Oak Flooring White BML. Its a pale grey colour, and we love it but its just a bit pink. Is there something you would recommend to hide the pink colour and bring it back to a neutral pale grey?
We have just one small sample of the flooring left that we can try test areas on – the flooring is now discontinued.
thanks

I have beech worktops that I have oiled with osmo clear satin but the effect is very orange with too much sheen. I am going to sand them back and was planning to use Osmo 3040 to lighten them and give a more lime washed effect. Would this dilute the orange? What do you reccomend then as a finish? I am looking for a light, toned down almost white washed wood if possible, or as close as I can with no orange tones!

It may work for you but I would strongly recommend a sample to be purchased first and carry out a test area. Clear oil will bring out the natural tones in the wood, whether this be orange, red or yellow, and some white or coloured oils can also have this effect. You will not know until that test area is carried out. Another option would be the Fiddes Hard Wax Oil Natural which is a clear that has a minute amount of white pigment that counteracts the darkening effect, again a test area is recommended.

I hope that helps and if you have any further questions please do let me know.

I am planning to purchase unfinished oak cabinets. I found a beautiful pickling wash that I love. I have been reading up on the osmo wax and everything I read says it must be applied to bare wood, except this article. You suggest that the osmo wax CAN be applied over a stained wood. Can it? If so, which osmo product would be best? Thank you!!!

You can apply the Osmo over a water based stain, although Osmo themselves would not recommend this, if you are trying to achieve a specific colour then it can make it easier. Apart from when you are trying to achieve a white finish. When trying to get white finishes you need to be very specific about what you use , for example applying a clear oil over white will result in a yellow tinged finish and so this is likely to be the case with your pickling. I recommend having a look at the option in this blog which will guide you as to which products will suit your project.

We are planning to sand our old oak floors, and we want to re-finish them using Osmo Oil. We are after a white finish, and after making test samples of all the above combinations we think applying a coat of Osmo Wood Wax Finish Transparent 3111, followed by a second coat of Osmo Polyx Oil Tints 3040 will create the effect we want. However, I am a bit concerned about how/if spot repair would be possible if we use the wax finish under the oil. Would we be able to sand back any future scratches, and apply the wax finish and the oil? Would the new wax finish blend seamlessly with the rest of the waxed & oiled surface, as the oil does?
Many thanks in advance.
Anita.

This is a good question. And one that I can not give a definitive answer to. Generally speaking the Osmo products are very good for patch repair and blending well when needed. There are other factors to consider such as time, when it comes to patch repair how long has the existing finish been on? Has the treatment been effected by sunlight over a time period that has resulted in fading or have areas that have had more foot fall, worn away. This can result in patch repaired areas looking slightly more vibrant.

So there are many factors to consider and it is always going to be that little bit harder with a white finish. That said however there oils are really good for situations that may result in the need for patch repair and of all the products we sell it will be the easiest to deal with and give the best results.

I hope that helps and if you have any further questions please do not hesitate to get in touch.